Assault on Fort Henry
Foote's Flotilla, as the group of ironclads under the command of Commodore Andrew H. Foote was called, shelled forts Henry and Donelson on the Tennessee and Cumberland Rivers, in preparation for an assault from Union land forces. ... Fort Henry was taken on Feb. 6, 1862 before the ground forces had even arrived. However, the four ironclads, Essex, Cincinnati, Carondelet, and St. Louis. sustained heavy damage due to the shelling from Fort Donelson perched on a high cliff overlooking the river.
